In the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge and in the heart of Succession territory is a culinary destination that will knock off many birds with one stone if you’re time-poor in New York.
One official estimate puts the number of ‘’food service’' establishments in the city at 19,400 – you’d have to dine at one every day for 53 years to get to all of them. And new ones are popping up every day. Immersing yourself in a one-stop shop is not a bad option.
The fabulously rebuilt and remodelled Tin Building in Lower Manhattan’s historic Seaport can save you a lot of time – there’s fine dining in exquisite restaurants, counter meals and takeout food and groceries from around the world.
Following the inaugural Qantas non-stop flight from Auckland to New York, we were taken to the Tin Building by the airline’s director of food, beverage and service, Neil Perry. It’s run by his friend, fellow chef and restaurateur Jean-Georges Vongerichten.
Perry rates Vongerichten (known universally by his first name) as one of the top half-dozen chefs in the world.
Jean-Georges is also a savvy businessman, owning or running more than 60 restaurants worldwide. He’s a genuine celebrity, obliging customers’ requests for photos with him as he proudly showed us around the 5000sq m building that traces its heritage back to the centuries-old fish markets that stood on the site.
A book he wrote, JGV – A Life in 12 Recipes, (worth buying at US$29 - $46) tells of how as a child in Alsace in Eastern France he watched mesmerised as his mother produced elaborate lunches nearly every day for the big family and a large network of friends and business contacts.
From her, he learned the value of high acidity in food (a sauce must be three times as powerfully flavoured as the meat you’re serving it with) and how to hustle. He’s a dynamo, flitting around staff and guests with ease, although he describes himself as a natural introvert.
The Tin Building was originally built in 1907. During a US$300 million rebuild, it was moved piece by piece 10m back from any encroachment from the East River (with some new structural additions.) It has a freshly painted feel to it, as you’d expect, as it was only opened in September 2022. And it’s not the noisy, buzzing street-level dining you’ll find elsewhere.
But you can’t help but be impressed by the scale of what was a labour of love for Jean-Georges and his development partners The Howard Hughes Corp. It’s been described by one food industry publication as “arguably the single most expensive and ambitious dining project in the history of this restaurant-mad city”.
The Tin Building invites guests to “expand their culinary horizons” on a continuous journey with a total of six full-service restaurants, six quick-service counters, four bars and a private dining room, where our group enjoyed what felt like a never-ending banquet of the highlights.
Among the restaurants is The House of the Red Pearl, through curtains and tucked away with a clandestine feel. It serves Chinese-inspired dishes and gives a good guide to what sort of prices you’ll pay; fragrant pork and shrimp wontons in chilli oil go for US$18 while roast duck in a honey soy glaze, pickled vegetables and seasoned buns is US$60 – before tips.
T. Brasserie is described as an ode to Jean-Georges’ childhood; the escargot was part of our banquet and is superb (US$24) as was a surprise dish, a gruyere cheeseburger with a puff pastry bun, green chilli mustard and fries for US$28. Unique, hearty and at that price good value.
Seeds & Weeds is a plant-based place that is billed as serving “boundary-defying” vegan and vegetarian food in a beautiful room incorporating sustainable materials and with views of the Brooklyn Bridge. The market beets with avocado puree and flavours of tartare were delicious (US$18) and, like everything we were served, beautifully presented. Like other restaurants, the menu is succinct and doesn’t overwhelm.
The Frenchman’s Dough is a traditional Italian restaurant with a French twist. Jean-Georges (and our fortunate group) is especially pleased with the limone pizza, which is topped with preserved lemon, fresh ricotta and parmesan cheese (US$22) for a zingy, yet comforting result. From Fulton Fish Co, oysters from Canada (US$4 each) were splendid as was the steamed Maine lobster (US$58). We tried both. Desserts start at US$12 and key lime pie is US$14.
Shikku is an intimate fine-dining Japanese sushi and sake restaurant with seating for 12 at the counter. The sushi and sashimi selection (including New Zealand salmon) was a work of art.
Fast and casual options include Mexican, Japanese noodles, a burger bar where you choose your bread, eggs and style, and crepes starting at US$8.
At the three gorgeous bars, and at the restaurants, prices start at US$8 for a beer; wine – with a tilt to France – starts at around US$15 per glass and so do cocktails. After that, the sky is the limit. Remember there are tips on top of that.
The food market and gourmet grocery outlets in the building are packed with more than 7000 speciality ingredients, meats, fish, cheeses and fresh produce. Very handy if you’re in an Airbnb nearby for putting together a picnic to have in the lovely riverside parks or docks nearby. A stone’s throw away is Battery Park, where the character Kendall Roy (Jeremy Strong) from the show Succession was last seen staring forlornly into the water. Jean-Georges works on the philosophy of his produce being globally inspired but locally sourced from within a 160km radius, wherever possible. He tells me he has brought in New Zealand lamb and kiwifruit and king salmon and John Dory.
Kids (and their parents) will be entranced by the Spoiled Parrot, a candy store with an international assortment of confectionary and high-end chocolate from around the world. This is high-end grocery shopping and while you’re not going to stock up your pantry for a month at the Tin Building, you’ll find food you haven’t seen before and the (Californian) avocados for US$2 each didn’t look like such a bad deal.
From a fleeting visit to New York, I found a key to happiness when dining is to imagine a dollar-for-dollar exchange rate and deal with it later. Without trying hard I found less expensive places in SoHo (US$16 for a hearty bowl of quinoa in a fantastic restaurant) and on Mulberry St in Little Italy (two big chicken fillets with vegetables for US$22 where the waiters could have been extras in any Italian movie). You’re going to have food experiences like no other. And there are still US$1-a-slice pizza places if you look hard.
The details
The Tin Building, 96 South St, New York, Lower Manhattan’s historic Seaport.
Neil Perry’s tips for good coffee in New York
A challenge to find one but Perry took us to a popular spot in the East Village in the heart of a Ukranian enclave of eateries and stores. The coffee and cinnamon bun was excellent at La Cabra, 152 2nd Avenue.
A great bar
Caffe Dante at 79-81 MacDougal St in Greenwich has small plates and great cocktails. A 107-year-old institution.
Getting to New York: Qantas flies non-stop from Auckland to New York’s JFK Airport three times a week (increasing to four times a week in October).
Viking’s cruise brings Europe to your balcony..